Re: Eberspächer BN2 in Vanagon?

> Hi all > > Thanks for all the input on BN2. > > Now I have found the repair manual too. Great. It looks really simple - that > is nice. > > I have a few ideas and questions; > > 1) Has anyone designed and build a thermostat, that works by the principle > of regulating the fuel-pump of the BN2? > > 2) Where does people (if anyone has done it before me) place the BN2 in > their Vanagon / Caravelle Bus? > I can see that it is designed to sit in the trunk of a Beetle - thus it > doesnt look weatherproof. Problem is that we do not have trunks in our > Vanagons... > > Happy driving > > Jens Jakob

I have a BN2 in my '78 Bus. The trick to making this tiny heater keep the Bus (driver) warm is to isolate the cabin (front seats) from the remainder of the space. I did this by installing a partition behind the front seats. Mine is a thin sheet of plywood extending all the way from floor to ceiling. It has a plexi window in it too. The partition could be made of canvas or even clear plastic sheet, I suppose.

Next, I mounted the heater behind the driver's seat (opposite the sliding door). The intake air and exhaust ports are on the bottom of the heater. I fabricated ducts from plumbing pipes.

I put a "TEE" fitting in the fuel line near the tank and mounted the pump for the BN2 on the frame rail of the Bus. Be sure to use a rubber noise isolation mount.

A short length of galvanized "flue pipe" (sheet metal) routes the hot air through the partition to the cabin. I found that simply letting the hot air exit between the seats was adequate.

For power, I ran a separate #8 (10 mm^2) wire directly from the battery to the heater. I put an automotive-style circuit breaker at the battery (40 Amp). You need to minimize voltage drop or else the glow plug won't work.

Temperature control on mine is manual with a toggle switch on the dash, but one could mount a thermostat under the dash or on the partition. It would need to be one not sensitive to motion,. such as bi-metal or liquid-filled.

You must not regulate the fuel pump as the burner is very sensitive to mixture. The heater is designed to be switched on and off via the control circuit. This ensures that the burner cools down and purges any unburnt air from the combustion chamber before attempting to re-light.

Speedy Jim

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Speedy Jim
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I put an Espar D1C in my '79 bus. The heater is about the size of a loaf of bread. It puts out 7,500 BTU/hr in the highest setting. When I switched engines, I removed the heater for convenience and haven't yet re-installed it. In 10 degrees F. it will easily keep the bus HOT inside. By that I mean T-shirt and window open! What I enjoyed especially was when I added a remote control so that on those cold mornings I simply walked to my window, clicked my remote toward the bus and could see the red LED indicating it was powering up. By the time I was ready to leave for work, the bus was toasty warm!

The D1C is a diesel version of the B1C. I bought the diesel version because I got a helluva deal on it (about $1000 off.) The unit does need to be mounted in a protected area but is so tiny, that could be most anywhere. I made two mistakes on initial install. The boat fuel tank I used had a quick-disconnect which did not seal well enough and the pump drew air which caused the unit to run lean and required repair. It uses about a teaspoonful of diesel in about ten minutes on high, so a tiny leak was enough to do the damage. The tank also had it's connection on top so it required drawing the fuel up a stand-pipe of about 5/8" diameter which was a hell of a volume for that tiny pump to pull, especially with an airleak! The other prob was that I had the pump directly under my bed and although it is reasonably quiet, when there is absolutely no other noise to wash it out, it may as well be an all-night railroad train!

New install will have the heater mounted under the bus in an enclosure of sheetmetal. The tank will be toward the front of the bus with a bottom-of-the-tank outlet. The pump will be close to the tank. Ducting will be selectable for recirc / outside air to cut down on window fogging.

I can connect you with the people I bought it from if you wish - they may have some left (diesel.)

-BaH Remove "remove" to e-mail

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Busahaulic

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